Born into a military family moving around often, Karen settled in Vista, California as a teenager in 1969. She graduated from Vista High School and went on to achieve her Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from National University.
She worked many administrative jobs in the education field in school districts and the County Office of Education in San Diego. Her last position was Controller for Oceanside Unified School District for 24 years until she retired in 2017. She served on many boards including as a Director of the Federal Land Impacted School Association (FLISA) and President of the San Diego/Imperial Section of the California Association for School Business Officials (CASBO).
She was awarded the CASBO San Diego/Imperial Section Member of the Year in 2010, and the Extra Mile Award for exemplary service and dedication to FLISA in 2016.